Dutch Result: Dutch and Wilders Party

dutch result: Center-right Rutte's decisive victory over anti-immigrant euroskeptic Wilders delighted European Union leaders and others concerned about rising populism across the bloc in the wake of last year's shock Brexit vote, according to The Japan Times. Le Pen's rivals for the presidency were quick to welcome the Dutch result, which centrist Emmanuel Macron said showed that a breakthrough for the extreme right is not a foregone conclusion and that progressives are gaining momentum. They said far-right leader Le Pen's campaign in France is better planned and targeted than that of Wilders' party, while a standoff between the Dutch and Turkish governments had given a one-off boost to incumbent Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte. Polls suggest that Macron, 39, an independent, will make it through the election's April 23 first round before comfortably beating the National Front's Le Pen in the runoff on May 7. We were all being told this was going to be a triumph for the extreme right, he said. Conservative Francois Fillon, a former prime minister who has slipped behind Le Pen and Macron after being the front-runner, said the Dutch result underlined that opinion polls are flawed. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.